We’ve grown accustomed to Marvel films like Eternals doing well at the box office and on streaming services.
However, one Caped Crusader is setting some insane records in the name of DC. Matt Reeves’ The Batman, starring Robert Pattinson as Gotham’s favorite vigilante, recently went to streaming after a 45-day theatrical run (during which the Robert Pattinson-led film found box office glory). And now, the superhero film is doing exceptionally well on HBO Max.
According to Deadline, The Batman received over 4 million views in its first week of streaming on the Warner Bros. Discovery-owned platform. That is a massive number, especially considering it spent over a month in theaters first and drew in a large number of moviegoers as a result of that release.
The latest Dark Knight-centric film has earned more than $350 million in the United States alone, and more than $750 million worldwide. Those are impressive numbers on their own, but when you factor in the over 4 million views the film received this week on HBO Max, it begs the question of how much money the film would have made if it hadn’t been promised to stream after its exclusive theatrical window.
Since DC’s Wonder Woman 1984 in December 2020, HBO Max has been the destination for the majority of Warner’s top films. For a time, the pandemic transformed the film industry, as the massive film studio simultaneously released productions in theaters and on the streamer in 2021. While filmmakers such as Christopher Nolan were dissatisfied with the deal (which even resulted in a Matrix-related lawsuit), the films did see varying degrees of success on the platform.
Films like WW1984, Dune, and The Suicide Squad drew large audiences because they were watched at home rather than in a theater. The simultaneous release strategy proved to be beneficial, though The Batman grossed significantly more than the aforementioned films.
After one week, Matt Reeves’ film has 4.1 million views, while Wonder Woman 1984 and Suicide Squad have 3.5 million and 3.2 million views, respectively. Dune, which did better at the box office than either of those superhero adaptations, received only 2.5 million views in its first week on HBO Max. Mortal Kombat is currently the only Warner Bros. release to outperform The Batman in terms of first-week views, with 4.3 million.
It should be noted that a portion of these figures are undoubtedly from fans who saw The Batman in theaters and also chose to watch it at home. Repeat viewings were unavoidable, especially since fans are still discovering new clues left by director Matt Reeves in the film. Still, the records the film is breaking are quite impressive, especially when compared to the previous Warner Brothers films it has outperformed in terms of viewership. That reminds me that I need to set aside some time to watch the three-hour film again.
With an HBO Max subscription, you can watch The Batman for the first time or rewatch it for the umpteenth time.